Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a worldwide public health problem that affects millions of people from all age, gender, racial, and ethnic groups. Diabetic nephropathy is the leading cause of chronic kidney disease (CKD). Likewise, DM is the leading cause of blindness and amputation and contributes substantially to cardiomyopathy and cerebrovascular and peripheral artery diseases. CKD is incurable, requiring renal replacement therapy, that is, dialysis or preferably renal transplantation. Simultaneous pancreas-kidney transplantation (SPKT) or pancreas after kidney (PAK) transplantation has revolutionized the way we manage type 1 DM and selected cases of type 2 DM with CKD; it provides a physiological means of achieving normoglycemia while rendering patients free of dialysis. Kidney transplant alone (KTA) leads also to better patient survival during long follow-up. However, the critical shortage of available organs for transplantation continues to severely limit this option, underlying the importance of novel therapeutic regimens to bypass these problems, such as stem cell therapy, which represents another source of cells for tissue regeneration. Additionally, recent advances in biology and medicine have also introduced new technologies to study the molecular pathology underlying DM-related complications, the development of novel strategies to treat these conditions, and the evaluation of outcomes.

We invite investigators to contribute original research articles as well as review articles that will stimulate the continuing efforts to develop novel drugs and therapeutic targets and new perspectives of combined therapies for decreasing micro- and macrovascular complications in DM. We are particularly interested in articles describing the advances in molecular pathology and molecular diagnostics; new insights into DM-related complications using animal models; current concepts in the treatment of DM using drugs, nanoparticles, siRNA, stem cells and microvesicles, and viral and nonviral gene therapy strategies; outcomes and clinical benefits of pharmacologic/nonpharmacologic therapies and of transplant (SPKT, PAK, and KTA) that provide better care to patients.

Potential topics include but are not limited to the following:

• Recent developments in micro- and macrovascular complications in DM research
• Advances in pharmacologic and nonpharmacologic therapies to treat those conditions
• Latest technologies for clinical evaluation and measuring outcomes
• DM-related complications using animal models
• Recent advances in cellular and molecular therapies to treat DM-related complications
• Role of modifiers in DM-related complications after transplant